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Claim: A viral photo claims that Ghanaian actor Akabenezer, with monikers – Dr Likee and Ras Nene, linked up with Real Madrid footballer Kylian Mbappé at Paris Fashion Week.
Verdict: False! The viral photo was manipulated—Akabenezer’s head was photoshopped onto Frenna, a Dutch-Ghanaian rapper’s body. The rapper originally met Mbappé in Madrid on February 20, 2025, not during Paris Fashion Week.
Full Text
On April 21, 2025, a photo surfaced on social media platforms, including X and Facebook, showing a man allegedly identified as Ghanaian actor Akabenezer (Dr Likee) meeting Kylian Mbappé, a star footballer for Paris Saint-Germain.
The image’s caption claimed the meeting occurred during Paris Fashion Week, garnering significant attention with thousands of reactions. Three key accounts shared the image, amplifying its reach:
- @Opanaa_1 on X (April 21, 2025): Posted with the headline “Akabenezer links up with Mbappé at Paris Fashion Week .” The post received 141K views, 382 retweets, 9.7K likes, and 103 comments.
- @the_marcoli_boy on X (April 21, 2025): Posted with the headline “Is this linkup real?” The post gained 88K views, 1,143 retweets, 9.7K likes, and 80 comments.
- Base Africa TV on Facebook (April 23, 2025, 2:52 PM): Posted with the headline “Akabenezer links up with Mbappé at Paris Fashion Week.” The post received a lot of likes.
Social Media Reactions:
The claim sparked varied responses on X:
- @BykMoni99 (April 21, 2025): “You dey give fake info pass. It wasn’t fashion week, it was dinner night.” (3.5K likes)
- @Richmon54112783 (April 22, 2025): “Na settings.” (484 likes)
- @kwakubolton (April 22, 2025): “I don’t believe this? You mean it happened? No way!!!”
- @RichardOwa85629 (April 22, 2025): “It is real.” (1.7K likes)
- @99th_spatan (April 22, 2025): “The person dey look like Stormzy.” (1.2K likes)
- @Adwentser3nkoaa (April 21, 2025): “Eiisshh big win!!!”
DUBAWA investigated the claim due to its viral spread, with over 229,000 views on X and Facebook, signaling a high risk of misinformation.
Verification
The investigation began by tracing the origin of the viral photo.
The image was first posted on Threads by Frenna (born Francis Edusei), a Dutch rapper and singer of Ghanaian descent, on February 20, 2025, during a visit to Madrid, Spain.
Frenna’s post, captioned “24H MADRID es,” received 67,943 views, 2,863 likes, 44 reposts, and two quotes. The original photo shows Frenna, identifiable by his sunglasses and short dreadlocks, meeting Mbappé.
Frenna meets Mbappé | credit: threads.com/@frenna
Upon closer examination, it became clear that Akabenezer’s head had been photoshopped onto Frenna’s body in the viral image. Key discrepancies include:
- Skin Tone and Lighting: Akabenezer’s skin tone and facial lighting do not match the rest of the body or the environment, which aligns more closely with Frenna’s complexion and the setting’s lighting.
- Facial Expression and Context: Akabenezer’s facial expression appears out of place, lacking the natural interaction seen in the original photo between Frenna and Mbappé.
- Event Location and Timing: The original post was made in Madrid on February 20, 2025, not during Paris Fashion Week, which typically occurs in late February or early March. Some X users, like @BykMoni99, noted that the event might have been a “dinner night,” further contradicting the claim about Paris Fashion Week.
Conclusion
The claim that Akabenezer (Dr Likee) met Kylian Mbappé at Paris Fashion Week is false. The viral photo was manipulated, with Akabenezer’s head photoshopped onto Frenna’s body.
